Operating a cupola furnace



Aug". 16, 1932. A. 1.. BOEGEHOLD' OPERATING A CUPOLA FQRNACE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Feb. 24. 1930 L. BOEGEHOLD 1,872,569

OPERATING A CUPOL A FURNACE Original Filed Feb. 24, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 16, 1932 Y ALFRED L. BOEGEH'OL D,"F"-15ET1IT;- Mreiiieiin .essieiro'n' TOKGENERAL MOTORSREq sk -nee GOR-EORATION'; on mmom-mcmem, A- CORPORATION on na'mwmm I v OPERATING A GUPOLA FURNACE- *Original application filed februery-ZQ11SO, $eria1 1T9. @032}, 'nivi'aed' and this appiicafion filetf 3 December .16, 1931. SeriaLNo. ESL-292'. V I Y This invention relaI'besfij Ytlie operefien- Of cupolap Inasmuch as ii is fle'siicdf to cupole furnaces 'cliesignedfoffiie' economical" util ze" in the charge irregular s teel s'cr'ap' production of cast iron; more particifi ale fieshj'ing's "and" the likefbhe n ures .l'arly to the operation 01- 'cup'olzi's' fiid ifitd the charges are infirodliceclj afc I enclose a reducing afifiibph eie in the melt edep'cedfio open soes to leeve ch rgm'go n 6 1 on I j I j V ljng s' o-f thefull cl oss -eect'ionel area of tlie Amonglthe objectsof the invention are cii'pola; At lea'si the lower closure consist? operate cupole with a reclucingetmospheiie of or'lswocloors hinge-(l to the Wall; of in" and over thecharge"conteining'portione; ciifgi olefo opendownward so as to lea' re a; to utilize substantially all of tliejgitses" ris free p-eS segeW-ay' eflfordi ig no obefiiiictione fin ing from the, melting zone and charge con wllthwl ilch iri egulerslci'ep" may bQ1fiifmining port-ion to restiofe heat to the cangledi- I H I H charges; to so charge'tlie cupola' that no Onecloen're 1e at-ehetopofthe c'upoigi,- tnd ases maybe lost during the charging opeif'a'- one iertherclovvn wit-hm thes queied orno-m; 3Q tio'n; to heat the air toibe forced through the each IlluS'c'mised as composed oftwo hinged tuyres b burning-e11 thecombusfiblegeg dooi'el The" doors 12' the upper cloiire produced in the cupoie and fifaiisferrihlg the ma loe op eiled for the reception of a; charge heat produced to theaiFblest; LOdry' fife-air by v swlngin'g them upward: and 'olitwiid" by mo be forced through the myreeyt feitcf riie'anslof enyisniteble' mechanism; notill iis tivate hygroscopic mafier'ial used todiy'eeifi tidied; Thecha'rge'mey then be inser'fcecltliru 5' air by forcing pure h fp air d'rliwn. fiomtlie' tlietopoffilie cupo'la'ont'othe ower closure hot air" on its wayjto'thecnpole'intd'cofitect consisting of the hinged (100mm; Wliichmay with seidfmatefizi l'; and ofiherwis to ifil f be" 'coiiiiier-Weighfed as' a fi li f fiofas j prove methodsend rheains'fof proclncinglfcesf' sisltf s istaining th'e charge and controlled] n iron. 7 7 r I v V by suifiableihechanim(not shown). The? up: In the accompanyingdfziwin'gewhich dispr'clocr's'im Inaythenbe cl'osed alnd fihe' (loci Sf close" somewhat dili'gfe iiiriiafice'l'ly 213 swilrigfclownwardt odifo thechalgeirito parat'us' eclaptedfo practice" tlie ilweiition; thecijtciile rfclieir'gencoiit ainingpoftioiioffihe Fig. 1 is a plan View ofai" cupo'la withas cflpolg wie'refcwodbors 12 are used one of" g s'ocia'lecl blast cifie'r and heater; vv them lizi a lip l 5s ecured to'iflsaioflippi'b 53" Fig 2lis=zij secfiionel elevation of the e15? jectin unclertli'e' edge of tli'eiiiazt'in'g' door" peretus on t'liejline22"of Fig. 1. y when in closet position In case two'd'o-oif'slj In the cirewings C Prs'exiiis c'iipol'gij 13' areli s'ed; one of t liem hzi'szi'similafli'p T6 -shown as charged Withalternate were of coje'rigage Withit'li'eetlgeOf the door A coke, and iron or st'e'el', to be mel'tedfof fi'li' Which mates with it" when iiiclbs'ecl production of cast iron. H indic'etesa lieet'ei" ass'liovfng Spaces are formed in tli e opposite for heating the aifbla'st used 'for'supplying inlrierisiidesof thecilpol'af to receiiiefihe (Icons oxygen' to the cupiolaflfoi" combustion pill? 13f when open; I j I i 'j V \poscs. D inclicates'edr iferfor cli'yiilgltheaiif nloicle'r 'tbdirecfi'e blast'o fi airjfbrcm eoprevi'ou to'its echnissioninto theheatef eiiil' biietio i, purposes into the coke atfthe bot-1 iii)" to the cupol'a. tom-0f thecupola,an zin'riiilar'winid box'orn Tlmt part of. the cupola represented by nti ciifcling rgia'nifdldi '17, su ioiincl" the lower; mere-l 10, which contains the cherge'sofcoke, portibmffiiie iipolaand communimeevmfi' end iron or steel, is circular in section-and" theiiit erior tlifeo-f thru" a'pliirzility of til-1 lined'w lth fire esist'zi-nt'meteifiileisciitdifnyeifes18'. A jipel'9 connecte'flief b'ox 1 7 with, 7 cry. The upper cheirg' admitting portion" tliez'heiitef'fi', whicli'cofiteins a Hammer:

of the cupo'lsvll' is preferably squiireihsccj changer'or tians f device ofthe'sliffacety'pe' ti'on'asj illustrated. Throughtwdiiei tictlly compriiiig" u'pper and loiVefheadeiQOfzincl spaced closures in this 'Sql'laf poi'fiionf the" 21 respectively, into which epluralifijdfifer charges ofcoke endniet alafe'intrtiduced'inuo tieal tcibes 22' are connected at their ends. 10?) thesquare portion of the cupola beneath the doors 13 and above the charges and the branch 30 enters said portion of the cupola between the doors 12 and 13. At the junction of the branch 30 with the pipe 28, there is a slight enlargement 31 which provides a shoulder 32 in line with the under side of branch 30. The shoulders thus formed constitute a seat for a valve 33, which, as shown, is suitably connected with one of the doors, 12,'so that when said door is opened by moving it upward the valve 33 is permitted to descend and engage the valve seat, thereby cutting ofi communication between the pipe 28 and the open cupola or external air thru the branch 30.

Drier D comprises a casing 40 in which are disposed a number of pans 41 arranged one above the other in zigzag form, as shown. These pans 41 are designed to receive a hygroscopic material such as calcium chloride or silica-gel, preferably the latter. There are a plurality of driers D preferably not less than three, as shown in Fig. 1, for a purpose to be made known presently. Each drier D is connected by several passages 42 with an air .inlet conduit 43. The passages 42 are shown as flaring or gradually enlarging in section ward the drier; and in the orifices at the points of connection with pipe 43 are arranged a number of baffles 44 for the purpose of well distributing the air flowing thru the pipe 43 to the several passages 42. The pipe 43 communicates with a moist air header pipe- D is in the upper position as shown in Fig. 2 the passage from pipe 43 through pipe 46 to header is closed while the passage from pipe 43 to header 47 is opened. When the 69 valve 48 is lowered over the communication between the pipe 43 and the header 47, the latter is closed off from communication with said pipe 43, and the passage to header pipe 45 is opened.

The outlet for air from a drier on its way from their connection with the pipe 43 toa valve48. When the valve 48 of any drier to the heater is indicated at 49. There is an outlet 49 for each drier and each of said out lets communicates by means of a short section of piping 50 with a header pipe 51 disposed above the outlet, and by means of a pipe sec- "i munication between said pipe 49 and the pipe 52 and header 53, but when in its upper position closes the communication between pipe 49, pipe 50 and header 51 leaving the lower communication open.

The valve 48 at the inlet side of each drier and the valve 54 at the outlet side of the same drier are suitably connected, as by the flexible connector 55, in such relation that when the valve 48 is on its upper seat, as illustrated, the valve 54 is on its lower seat.

The header pipe 51 is connected by a single conduit 56 with the blast heater H, as shown in Fig. 2, while the lower header 53 is connected by the single pipe 57 with the pipe 19 which leads directly from the blast heater to the wind box 17 Within the heater H, baffles 58 are disposed in between the tubes 22, so that dry air entering the heater thru the pipe 56 will have to take a somewhat tortuous passage around the baflles before passing from the heater into the pipe 19 on its way to the cupola.

Rising from the moist air header pipe 45, before referred to, at one end, is a stack 59 adapted to discharge moist air from an exhaust blower 60.

Rising from the heater H is a stack 61 in which. is disposed an exhaust blower 62 adapted to discharge waste gases of combustion from the heater H.

In operation, successive charges of coke and metal are introduced into the cupola as needed. To introduce a charge of coke and metal the doors 12 are opened and the valve 33 closed upon its lower seat thus shutting ofi communication between stand pipe 28 and the outer atmosphere. The charge is deposited upon the doors 13. When a sufficient quantity has been deposited on doors 13, the doors 12 are closed thus lifting valve 33, thereby establishing communication between standpipe 28 and the space between the two closures in the cupola thru pipe 30. The doors 13 are then opened and the charge dropped into the cupola. Successive charges are introduced into the cupola in this manner.

Assuming the lower layer of coke to have been ignited:

With the apparatus adjusted as shown in Fig. 2, air enters the lower header pipe 47 from a blower 64 (shown in Fig. 1) as indi cated by the arrow at the left. It passes up into the pipe 43 and thence thru the drier D. Fromthe drier D it passes thru the pipe 49 and into the header 51 and thence into the heater H. From the heater H it passes thru the pipe 19 into the manifold orwind box 17 and thru the tuyeres into the cupola where it enters into the lower coke bed. The heater H, when the coke is burning, receives the unburned gases which rise thru the charges to the top of the cupola thru stand pipe 28 into the furnace 27 where it is ignited. The gas and products of combustion from the gas burning in the furnace 27 pass up thru the holes in the floor 25 and thru the tubes 22 and, after having given up a proportion of their heat to the air surr-oundingtubes 22 in the heater, the resulting burned gases are drawn thru the stack 61 by the exhaust blower 62 and are driven out of the top of the stack.

A plurality of driers is used so that when the hygroscopic drying material in one of them has become saturated with moisture this material may be reactivated by absorbing the moisture in a current of hot air. When it has been decided to reactivate one of the driers the valves 54 and 48 appertaining to that particular drier are reversed in position with respect to that shown in Fig. 2. With the valves in this new position some of the pure dry hot air flowing from the heater toward the cupola is shunted oif thru the pipe 57 conducted to the header 53 and thence to the drier thru the open port pertaining to that particular drier. This pure dry hot air passes over the pans containing the hygroscopic material and now laden with moisture picked up from the hygroscopic material flows into the pipe 46 and then upward into the header pipe 45, which is subject to the draught produced by the exhaust blower 60, and thence it is driven out thru the stack 59. When the material in this particular drier has been reactivated it is again put into service to dry incoming air as previously described. Each of the several driers may be reversed for reactivating the hygroscopic materials in the same manner and again put into service without interfering with the operation of the others.

In the apparatus disclosed all of the gases generated in the cupola are drawn off and used to heat the air blast. Even when charges are being introduced no gases escape; when the lower doors 13 are closed they escape thru the cross pipe 29, and when a charge is being dropped thru the doors 13 they escape also thru the pipe 30, into the furnace 27, where the combustible ingredients are burned. If there is insuflicient air in the gases roceeding from the cupola to support com ustion additional air may be admitted thru the door of furnace 2?.

In operating this cupola the quantities of fuel and air, introduced are in such proportions as to provide a reducing atmosphere in the melting zones. It is not economic to have a reducing atmosphere in the ordinary quently lowering the'cost of the cast-iron produced.

With the apparatus disclosed herein it is possible to obtain a satisfactory reducing atmosphere without substantial losses of carbon monoxide because the heat available from its combustion is transferred to the air blast and so restored to the cupola.

In the ordinary cupola the gases in the melting zone and charge containing portion analyze approximately 14% carbon dioxide and 12% carbon monoxide. Because the quantity of carbon monoxide is less than that of carbon dioxide, the carburizing effect of the gases on the metal is slight, most of the carbon collected by the iron being absorbed when the iron is molten from the incandescent coke in contact with it. By burning the fuel so that the gases in the melt- 1ng zone are composed of about 25% of carbon monoxide and 12% of carbon dioxide, the carbon monoxide becomes a powerful carburizer, and increases the amount of carbon that can be introduced into the iron metal during the melting. As a result the non drawn from the cupola will contain the quantity of carbon to make good cast iron even though a large proportion of steel scrap be used in the charge.

TlllS application is a division of application S. N. 430,821. r

I claim: 1. A process of operating a cupola containing charges composed of alternate layers of coke and iron metal, which consists of introducmg a quantity of air into the lower portion of the cupola at the bottom of the charge such that the gases generated by combustion of the coke which permeates the charges. contain a larger quantity of carbon monoxide than of carbon dioxide, withdrawing gas from the space in the cupola above the charges, burning said gas, and transferring the heat generated thereby to the air to be introduced into the lower portion of the cupola.

2. A process of operating a cupola containing charges composed of alternate layers of coke and iron metal, which consists of introducing a quantity of air into the lower portion of the cupola, continuously withdrawing from the space in the cupola above the charges all of the gas generated by combustion of the coke, burning the combustible ingredients of said gas, transferring the heat generated by the burning gas to a moving body of air, :andintroducing the so heated air into the, lower; ,portion of the cupola.

3. Theg-process of operating a oupola as defined in claim '2 in combinationwith-the following steps: drying the moving body of air to be heated bypassing it over mnwss of hygroscopic material, and subsequently reactivating the hygroscopicnmterial by direotingover itiair dried by contact With. another mass of hygroscopic material and heated .by-said burning gas, said airv for reactivating' the hygroscopic material being withdrawn from the body of hot air being introduced into the lower portion of the cupola.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

, ALFRED ,L. BoEG'EHoLn. 

